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A nineteenth-century pub in south London that was forced to close in 2021 has reopened as a community space. The managers hope The Star of Greenwich will eventually turn into the ‘most inclusive pub in London’.
The pub on Old Woolwich Road in east Greenwich, which used to be called The Star and Garter, closed in August 2021. It was resurrected at the end of April this year by James Gadsby Peet, Kirsty Donohoe and Lisa Dunlop, who recognised the old boozer as an ‘asset of community value’.
Gadsby Peet told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): ‘Our theory is that the more people who can meet one another, who wouldn’t normally meet, the more conversations and the more understanding there is, that helps the community be more resilient and just a nicer place to be.
‘The pub managers have set themselves the challenge of becoming the most inclusive pub in London.’
Since opening, Gadspy Peet said the charity English for Action London has been allowed to use the space for free, while parents are able to leave their kids in the children’s play area while they learn English.
The Star or Greenwich is also offering affordable lunches to locals at fixed prices. Donohoe told the LDRS: ‘We’ve got a lot of food banks [in London] because of the current climate.
‘But also people living in London could be in a room where they can’t cook for themselves and they’re either having to eat out or buy sandwiches and things like that.
‘[The Star of Greenwich] is making an area where people can feed themselves.’
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